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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24436429">and get the colors just right.</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/nyabatos/pseuds/nyabatos'>nyabatos</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>a thousand lifetimes [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd is Not Okay, F/M, Falling In Love, Fire Emblem: Three Houses Blue Lions Route, byleth gets mad, claude is dumb sometimes, with a mix of golden deer</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-20 06:55:21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,760</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24436429</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/nyabatos/pseuds/nyabatos</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>silvery locks were not the only thing marking his difference.</p>
<p>a fire ached in his chest, and he stood there, watching, unsure if it was the goddess's holy crest burning him into ash or if he was drowning in the endless depth of her radiance. </p>
<p>a deep, azure color crossed his vision and everything changed.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>My Unit | Byleth/Claude von Riegan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>a thousand lifetimes [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1707730</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>49</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>and get the colors just right.</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>highly recommended song to listen to while reading this: forever (is a long time) by halsey.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The first thing Claude felt was warm hands on his back. </p>
<p>Coughing up the stale water in his lungs, he squinted his eyes open on a sunny, chilly day. Shivers. Mint green hit his vision and immediately his coughing ceased.</p>
<p>Byleth.</p>
<p>“You’re alive,” he croaked, water still spilling from his lips. Her smile greeted him, tight and uncomfortable, and he felt his stomach drop.  </p>
<p>“Teach?”</p>
<p>And she turned away then, eyes becoming sharp and guarded. The hand on his back clutched at him in warning. He looked around his surroundings, only to find he was at the bank of a familiar river, wrapped in a cloth of some sort. Water continued to drip from his hair to the back of his neck, and he cringed in discomfort. A strand of something silvery white plastered on his face, and he stilled in shock when he found out it belonged to him.</p>
<p>A questioning look at her yielded no answers.</p>
<p>Byleth left his side for the briefest moment to converse with a villager wearing a confused expression on his face. They talked for a while and he assumed she was asking for information, before his professor nodded her thanks to the man and came back to him.</p>
<p>“Claude,” she said, and the way his name sounded from her lips still made him shiver, “Come with me.”</p>
<p>He would never question her, of course. “Where are we going?”<br/><br/>She tilted her head and he followed, shock filling his every nerve at the sight of a ruined fort beyond the mountains, “Garreg Mach. It’s been five years.”</p>
<p>The idea seemed stupid to him. Ridiculous. It made him a bit angry, even, to be deceived with such an obvious lie. </p>
<p>But the way she was looking at him gave him no reason to doubt her.</p>
<p>As they made their way up the mountain, he couldn’t help the hundreds of questions that poured out of him. Byleth, bless her, patiently answered all of them as if she owed him an explanation. </p>
<p>Maybe she did.</p>
<p>From her words, they have been asleep together for five years, hidden in the depths of the river right below the monastery. It made sense, really; the last thing he remembered was falling down that chasm to chase her fading image. Claude must admit it was not one of his smartest moments, but something was clouding his judgement. Something that felt visceral, like an ancient force well beyond his comprehension, the way his heart twisted at her gaze. She was falling, and the only thing he was capable of was to catch her.</p>
<p>From the look on her face now, she didn’t think it was the right thing to do. </p>
<p><em> Why not? </em> He ached to ask. <em> I love you. </em></p>
<p>But as the words were about to leave his lips, they approached the fallen Garreg Mach monastery and the sun lit a path of destruction so ghastly it made him speechless.</p>
<p>Bodies littered the floor. Soldiers. Some with tendons peeling off their chalk white bones, some with blood still oozing from freshly cut wounds. The smell of rotten flesh baked the air, and he barely managed to not gag. Byleth, still as impassive as ever, wordlessly gestured for him to stay.</p>
<p>In front of them sat a listless shadow, clutching a silver lance. </p>
<p>She approached it, her boots clicking on the stone floor, the noise loud and jarring in the middle of that deafening silence. The figure did not lift their head, sitting as still as a statue. With every step she took, the person moved a little, showing first a head of matted, barely blond hair, and then a single, crystal clear blue eye.</p>
<p>Claude stifled the gasp bubbling in his throat.</p>
<p>“I should have known,” the voice said to Byleth, gruff with disuse and scratchy, but undoubtedly Dimitri’s, “That one day…you would be haunting me as well.”</p>
<p>She said nothing, her hand still holding out for the prince. Offering him a path of escape, of redemption.</p>
<p>Dimitri stood up, a staggering height that dwarfed both Byleth and him. Claude could sense it, danger in the air that made the hair on his skin stand straight up, but she gave him a look that told him, very firmly, to stay in the shadows.</p>
<p>So he bit his tongue and complied. She seemed to know what she was doing.</p>
<p>“You,” the prince snarled, his voice shaky with rage and a hint of desperation, “What must I do to be rid of you? I will kill that woman, I swear it. Do not look upon me with scorn in your eyes!”</p>
<p>Byleth shook her head. “Everything will be okay,” she said, her voice soft and placating but the muscle on her shoulder blades tensed in a way that told him she was prepared to drop into a defensive stance any time. Claude narrowed his eyes, hand moving to unsheathe the dagger hidden in his boot if need be, hoping the prince hadn’t picked up on that miniscule change in her body language. </p>
<p>Dimitri was silent for a split second, seemingly in shock. “You—it can’t be,” he breathed, wobbly with emotion. “You’re alive?”</p>
<p>Claude felt the tension leaving his body. Vulnerable; he was being vulnerable. He wouldn’t harm Byleth.</p>
<p>But then the other man’s head tilted just the slightest bit, as if listening to an unknown voice. His eyes widened. Whispers of the dead. They must’ve screamed in rage, because his face scrunched in confusion and then agony, before settling with fury. </p>
<p>Everything happened so quickly that even Claude barely had any time to react. </p>
<p>The prince grabbed Byleth by her neck, slamming her head against the wall. “Did you come here to kill me?” He spat harshly in madness, his hand gripping the column of her throat and cutting off her airway. Claude knew that if she wanted to she could’ve easily unsheathed the dagger by her side and gouged out Dimitri’s other eye, but she remained there in his grip, gasping for breath, clutching at his hand. “Are you another Imperial spy?”</p>
<p>Shock held Claude down for about three seconds but for him, that was three seconds too late.</p>
<p>He drew his knife, dull and rusted from years submerged in water but the only weapon he had, and dashed with all his speed to catch the prince off guard, pressing the blade to his jugular from behind.</p>
<p>“Let. Her. Go.”</p>
<p>Dimitri stilled, dropping his chokehold on Byleth but his hand remained there, like a reminder that he could still crush her windpipe at a moment’s notice. She heaved for oxygen, but regained her composure quickly as if this wasn’t the first time someone tried to strangle her. “Claude?” He asked, not even needing to turn back to confirm his guess. That presence was unmistakable. </p>
<p>“I said, let her go.”</p>
<p>His shoulders trembled. Tremors wracked the blonde’s massive frame before laughter bubbled out from his chest, deranged and maniacal. “And what makes you think I’m afraid of death?” </p>
<p>Claude gritted his teeth. This wasn’t the Blue Lions house leader he used to know anymore. No, five years of untold and unimaginable terror had changed him into this husk of a man, a man so reckless and suicidal that not even a killing blow would make him falter. </p>
<p>Dimitri looked in front of him. Byleth’s face was still void of any emotion, calm and collected, not a hint of fear at the face of imminent death. She was never scared on the battlefield, so why would she be scared now?</p>
<p>“Give me—” he started, and Claude pressed the dagger a bit closer to his flesh, drawing blood. The prince scoffed, eyes wild. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t kill you right now.”</p>
<p>And Byleth, with her eyes betraying a rare hesitance before that face settled, as aloof as ever, uttered, “Dedue is alive.”</p>
<p>Those three words were enough to shake the tall man, as he dropped her to the ground in disbelief, backing away from her and bumping into Claude’s chest. Claude held firm, unwilling to let go just yet in case Dimitri decided to slaughter them both. He could never forget the prince’s monstrous strength, after all, and to slip up was to die. </p>
<p>But Dimitri dropped his lance, his arms hanging limply on his sides. He shook his head like a petulant child, an elephant chasing flies from its face. “No,” he denied, his breaths picking up and Claude could recognize the beginnings of a panic attack any day, “It can’t be. He died for me. He gave his life for mine. I saw it. He’s still right here, right<em> there! </em> I can hear him. Along with the rest of the ghosts. They’re chanting for her head.”</p>
<p>The prince pointed to a corner filled with shadows, breaking into crazed laughter, but the moss on the wall did not give him any answers. Claude slowly eased the knife from his throat, and Dimitri fell into his arms, shaking like a leaf. Byleth stood next to them, seemingly at a loss for words, as if this was something she had never witnessed before.</p>
<p>“It can’t be,” he mumbled, over and over. Claude didn’t know what to do but held the man in a confused embrace as he continued to shake.</p>
<p>Byleth got on her knees, looking at both men on the floor. “I’m glad you’re safe,” she told Dimitri.</p>
<p>The prince stilled, looking up at her with his one good eye, his expression unreadable.</p>
<p>“Are you?”</p>
<hr/>
<p>The Blue Lions reunion was a strange thing. After conversing again with the ghosts in his head, Dimitri had picked himself up and grabbed his lance, making quick work of the unlucky bandits who had chosen the monastery for their base. Claude had never seen slaughter that efficient before; Dimitri facing them on a six to one odds, and still decimating any enemy foolish enough to attack. The rest of the former Blue Lions students have shown up, following a five years old pledge to reunite. They had done the same thing too, him and his Golden Deer, his mind supplied. From some distant past it was him in Dimitri’s shoes, it was him waiting for Byleth’s return. He shook his head. Now wasn’t the time to think about that.</p>
<p>He briefly wondered how his fellow Deer were doing, and found himself quickly praying to the goddess that they were all at least, alive. </p>
<p>Claude felt much like an outsider, not for the first time. The Blue Lions gawked at his appearance, some were glad that he was still alive, and updated him on what’s been going on in the Leicester Alliance in his absence. Byleth grimaced visibly at news of how, without his cunning plans and leadership, the Alliance was on the brink of collapse, with Ordelia and Gloucester territories already fallen under Imperial clutches.</p>
<p>Grave news fell on all of them. Edelgard have used the past five years to her advantage, with the absence of Byleth and the Archbishop missing to steamroll her way through Fódlan, forging peace in a crucible of blood. Everyone had lost someone, something, from this ruinous war, and while Claude admired the Emperor’s goal to abolish the Crest system and create equality, bloodshed was not how he would do it.</p>
<p>Retiring from the briefing with nothing but bad news and a resolve to fight back, he tailed his professor back to her quarters, determined to finally get some answers. </p>
<p>As soon as the door closed behind them, for the first time ever even in his hazy past memories, Byleth Eisner snapped.</p>
<p>“Consequences!” She hissed, pacing the room, “Claude von Riegan, have you ever thought about <em> consequences? </em>”</p>
<p>“Whoa Teach,” he raised his hands in surrender, hesitant and guarded, “What are you talking about?”</p>
<p>She looked at him as if he was the densest person on the continent of Fódlan, “Why did you do that? Why did you fall with me?” </p>
<p>
  <em> Because I love you. </em>
</p>
<p>He bit the words back before they slip. “You needed someone.”<br/><br/>Byleth laughed dryly, incredulous. “Boy,” she came up to his face, and even with their height difference he felt small under her glare, “You have no idea how this game is played.” <br/>“Then tell me.”</p>
<p>She was silent for a moment, so long that he thought he might have said the wrong thing. But he wasn’t one to regret his words, and thus even with all of his walls already down and nothing to protect him from this discomfort, he waited for her answer.</p>
<p>“Fine,” she said.</p>
<p>His professor sat him down and told him everything. How she had been stuck in this constant cycle of death and rebirth, of new beginnings and endless resolutions. That much he had figured out but had never really believed it; she was always so prepared for everything there was no other explanation but divine intervention. But then she told him of other things he should’ve already deduced, of how her every action would have unforetold consequences if she neglected to keep on the path, if she broke the script. Byleth told him of things that have happened before because of one misstep, one wrongly chosen option; Fódlan in complete anarchy, endless war with Almyra at his death—he had cringed at that one, feeling bile rising in his throat, people suffering genocides and cruel tortures and experiments by an underground organization, paths of destruction everywhere. </p>
<p>“One <em> single </em> thing,” she said, her finger pointed at his face, shaking, “When you decided to fall with me, did you ever stop to think about how this would affect everyone else?”</p>
<p>In truth, his mind was screaming for him to follow in a unanimous, impossible to ignore howl. He didn’t think that far.</p>
<p>How uncharacteristic.</p>
<p>Byleth let out a breath. “Okay. I don’t have Sothis with me anymore so <em> you </em> are going to help me find a way out of this without all of our allies dying a terrible death.”</p>
<p>“Anything,” he said. Goddess, what a mess they have created.</p>
<p>His willingness to offer help seemed to calm her down. She finally took a seat on the bed next to him, and it finally seemed to register to her that they were in her old bedroom in the monastery, where they used to have tea together sometimes. A hint of the faintest color brushed her cheeks. </p>
<p>She sighed. “I’m sorry I yelled at you. This has never happened before in my seven hundred and sixty five existences, so you can say I’m feeling a bit stressed.”</p>
<p>His eyebrows shot to his hairline. “That many?” She huffed at his expression, a brief laugh, “Wow Teach, I can’t imagine how many times you’ve seen me die.”</p>
<p>It was supposed to come out as a joke, but the way her face darkened told him that maybe it wasn’t that funny.</p>
<p>“Four hundred and twenty,” she said.</p>
<p>A silence blanketed them. Never before had he been at a loss about how to diffuse a situation, until now. His nervous tics that he had been training himself out of since childhood took over, and he tucked a strand of hair back behind his ear.</p>
<p>The gesture caught her eye. “Ah, your hair.”</p>
<p>“Teach?”</p>
<p>She took his hand by surprise, her face finally breaking and showing clear emotion. Grief. “I’m sorry, Claude.” </p>
<p>He hesitantly reached out and brushed her cheek, realizing with a start that there were tears on her face. “Why are you sorry?”</p>
<p>“I—How can I explain this?”</p>
<p>He kept his silence, encouraging her to take her time. One of her hands gently cupped his, leaning into his touch on her skin. “You were dying, Sothis couldn’t save you, and the only thing that would is my Crest. I’m sorry—I can’t bear the thought of you dying again.”</p>
<p>“Your Crest?” He asked, as softly as he could manage amidst the hundred of questions buzzing in his head at this revelation, “But I already have the Crest of Riegan. Is it even possible to have two?”</p>
<p>She nodded. “It is, it is,” Her tears were falling for him again and he frowned. She shouldn’t be crying for anyone, much less him. “Lysithea has two. Edelgard has two. There’s a reason why they both have white hair and now you do too.”</p>
<p>His eyes widened in realization. “Crest implants?”</p>
<p>Again, she could only nod. </p>
<p>“It makes you stronger,” Byleth said, “But it eats away at your life. Dramatically cuts down the years you have. It was the only way to save you from that chasm.”</p>
<p>Admittedly, it took him quite a while to come to terms with that.</p>
<p>Claude wrapped his arms around her. “It’s okay. You saved my life.”</p>
<p>“I doomed you.”</p>
<p>“Oh come on, Teach. It was my own decision. You cleaned up after me the best you could. Besides, doesn’t this mean that I have both my Crest and the Crest of Flames now? Is it a major Crest? That’s pretty awesome. What perks do you get?”</p>
<p>She laughed wetly and socked him on the ribs. “The Crest of Flames <em> is </em> pretty awesome. It can revive you as long as your body is intact.”</p>
<p>“Reviving, huh,” he said, a bit dumbly. “Not dying seems cool.”</p>
<p>That earned him another laugh and he thought, maybe trading a few decades of his life for this isn’t such a bad idea.</p>
<hr/>
<p>More secrets kept coming out after that. Byleth told him of the power resting in her, the Divine Pulse that can turn back time. He had stared at her in disbelief; so that was why she had seen him die so many times, and gathered her in his arms once more when the burden of shouldering this entire reality by herself finally started to crack. He lingered in her room that night, staying up until sunrise whispering secrets, tasting the trust thick on his tongue. </p>
<p>He had offered all he could. Claude imagined Byleth must’ve already known about his heritage long ago, confirmed when she went off on a tangent about how she unironically missed the balmy heat of Almyra every time she stayed in Fhirdiad’s freezing cold. She told him how each timeline would typically end, with her married to someone they both know from this timeless game, and finally coming to a conclusion with her death. </p>
<p>“What happened in the timeline before this?” He asked, voice hushed in the quiet night. Under the dying candlelight mixed with the rosy hues of the sky outside, a blush dusted her cheeks with just the slightest color. </p>
<p>“It was you,” she said, seemingly lost in some far away realm. He faintly recalled his dreams, of him lying with his head in her lap and hair faded much like the silvery color it had become now but with a different reason, their son’s laughter ringing through the courtyard. Warm kisses on his skin and the feeling of soft lips was enough to bring his blood to a low simmer.</p>
<p>“We were married,” Byleth continued, not minding the way he was heating up next to her. The two of them were lying on her floor hazardously, blankets and pillows stolen from her bed and scattered near their heads, staring up at the ceiling. Claude turned over to look at her then, just in time to catch the fond gleam in her eyes. “Almyra was especially nice that last year. I’ve considered resetting the timeline for quite a while; your age was starting to bring you more pain than pleasure, but our son—”</p>
<p>He felt a lump of emotion choking off his voice. “Our son,” he echoed, swallowing hard. “Tell me more?”</p>
<p>Byleth shook her head. “There’s no point in dwelling in the past, Claude.”</p>
<p>“Please.”</p>
<p>Her eyebrows inched just the slightest bit upwards. Claude hardly ever begs. For anything.</p>
<p>She let out a breath. “We named him after your father. Faheem.”</p>
<p>“Faheem von Riegan,” he choked. Byleth nodded, fond, and continued at his wordless plea. “He had your hair. To be honest, he was your spitting image. The only things he definitely inherited from me were my eyes and my half cooked immortality.”</p>
<p>“Immortality?” </p>
<p>Byleth turned completely to meet his eyes. “Yeah,” she sighed. “Part of the deal with hosting a goddess is that you don’t age. I’ve never had children with anyone else before for this exact reason; I feared that eventually they would die before my eyes or I won’t ever get to watch them grow up. At least he did.”</p>
<p>She went quiet at the look in his eyes. “But it was slow. Too slow. You were dying by the time he was turning ten.”</p>
<p>Claude was silent at this revelation. So Byleth would never die, and neither would their children. His thoughts must’ve leaked, or she had learned to read him too easily now, because her eyes softened and she took his hand. </p>
<p>“I really am sorry. I wish I had the chance to see him grow into the young man he could be, but the timeline ended before I could.”</p>
<p>“Why did it end?”</p>
<p>Her eyes hardened. “Assassination. I had my guard down. It was an amateur mistake.”</p>
<p>He simmered with anger. Everyone on Fódlan knew that nobody would be able to challenge her in lone combat, and so they resorted to these dirty tactics. He had been on the receiving end of too many similar attempts. </p>
<p>But she did say that it was all in the past. For now, all he could do was to make sure no one else would dare doing such a thing again. </p>
<p>“You know,” he whispered, determined to move on from this sour spot in their conversation, “I remember. Not all, but some of it, at least.”</p>
<p>She laughed, a faint, airy sound. “Yes, I know. That little stunt you pulled with the flower gave me and Sothis quite a scare.”</p>
<p>The grin on his face was almost brighter than the sun rising outside their window. “I wasn’t sure if it was true but it’s not like I could just pull you aside and blatantly ask. You’d vehemently deny it if it was and think I’m crazy if it wasn’t. Lorenz’s rambling about the nobility gave me that particular idea though.” He winked at her, full of his usual charm. “Did it work?” </p>
<p>“Maybe.”</p>
<p>He rose to his elbows, peering down at her. “Aww, c’mon Teach. Throw a guy a bone?” </p>
<p>“Maybe,” she said once more with a smile, something unreadable in her eyes. Outside, the monastery slowly stirred to life, sounds of people bustling about echoed in long abandoned corridors, waking each other up. A sharp knock on her door broke the trance between them as one of the servants informed her that breakfast was ready, and they exchanged a look, knowing how awfully suspicious it would be when they came to his room and found no one there. </p>
<p>Claude sighed, preparing to deal with nosy people who will inevitably speculate about his relationship with his former professor and assume that they have done something inappropriate together last night. “I’m sorry,” he offered, grimacing as he pulled his tattered coat on. He needed a new one soon. “I got carried away. Should’ve left your room before rumors start flying.”</p>
<p>“If you had left my room before dawn it would’ve looked more suspicious,” she sighed. “It’s fine.” </p>
<p>Byleth stood up and he had to avert his gaze at how her shorts were rucked up messily, revealing the milky shade of her thighs. Her arms rose as she stretched, and his eyes almost fell out of their sockets as her really not practical at all shirt exposed more of her torso than he was prepared to deal with this early in the morning.</p>
<p>Her noises of pleasure didn’t help, either, and he whimpered a little at how delicious she sounded. “Have a good day, Claude,” she bid him goodbye, leaving him staring blatantly at her retreating form. “Just remember you’re not an outsider, okay? I’m sure the Blue Lions would love to talk to you.”</p>
<hr/>
<p>True to her words, the Blue Lions welcomed him with open arms. The oldest girl, Mercedes, took one look at him and demanded for him to allow her to find him some decent clothes. Claude was somewhat reluctant to part with his old academy uniform; his house colors still adorned him and it brought a sense of belonging with it, but he knew she was right. The other girl, Annette, even offered to find something yellow for him if it would make him more comfortable.</p>
<p>The old bath house still worked well but Claude eyed the water hesitantly. He was pretty sure he drowned before Sothis fished him out of the river into her dreamlike domain since the feeling of liquid gushing down his throat, filling up his lungs until each breath he took was more water than air made fear crawl down his spine. He opted to grab the nearest towel and tried to clean himself off as much as he could without having to submerge his body. The steam caressed his skin with nostalgic warmth, humidity melting away tension. His body knew it had been way too long since the last time he got to experience something like this, but for Claude the Battle of Garreg Mach was a few days ago. A week, at most. How could five years have passed, just like that?</p>
<p>And yet, the evidence didn’t lie. Dimitri had grown a head taller than him, his massive form towering over everyone else. The other Blue Lions have visibly matured as well, looking completely different from what he remembered. Their skills in battle have aged well; they were seasoned warriors now. It was like the world had stood still for him and Byleth, space frozen in a lull of time, where the stars dwelled and where immortality made the passage of time irrelevant. It was, admittedly, a bit crazy for him to wrap his head around, but he had to accept that he had broken the cycle and became a part of this now. A part of Byleth’s secrets. </p>
<p>An hour later, Claude stared at himself in the mirror. </p>
<p>Finally getting a good look of the state he was in, he was startled at how his reflection stared back at him from a body he didn’t recognize. He could see that he had aged for a year or two, in how the cut of his jawline had become sharp, more well defined, and his eyes echoed with those years he couldn’t remember. His shoulders broadened, and his hair… </p>
<p>Claude touched the silvery locks that didn’t belong to him. They still felt the same, still wild and untamed, soft and full of life. But the color made his skin appeared darker than it actually was, and he wouldn’t be surprised if someone thought he was from Duscur. The result of Byleth giving him her blood to save his life, an indicator of his newfound power that came hand in hand with his shortened lifespan. No wonder why Lysithea was such a capable mage. </p>
<p>He eyed the pile of clothes Mercedes and Annette left on his bed before shrugging and putting them on. He looked strange in blue, his skin darkening a shade or two in the bright smear of azure woven in the fabric. The girls have apologized to him profusely at the lack of yellow; the monastery had been sacked mercilessly before they returned and everything of value had been taken away from the students' dormitories. These were the only clothes that survived both the looting and the moths. </p>
<p><em> These were Dimitri’s </em>, he thought, exasperated at how the pants legs fluttered at his ankles, just slightly too long. He rolled them into his boots defiantly, grunting at how even the jacket was embroidered with silver threads. The lack of gold on his skin felt strange. </p>
<p>And apparently Byleth shared the sentiment. As he sat down in the dining hall, she caught his eyes and hers slightly widened at his new look. She nodded something to the priest trying to make conversation, and walked over to his table. Her gaze felt heavy on him. Assessing, almost, and he felt like he was once again in her classroom, caught staring at Lorenz’s test papers. </p>
<p>“Here,” she said finally, unclipping the pendant on her chest that had somehow survived the five years underwater and tucked the thing on his belt, “The Claude von Riegan I know would never leave his room without wearing something golden. You looked weird without it.”</p>
<p>The teasing smile on her face made him feel warm, too warm. The weight of the pendant rested reassuringly on his hip, a reminder that she would always be by his side. His heart was beating wildly; there was no doubt that he loves her. The question was, does she love him?</p>
<p>“Sorry the tassel isn’t yellow,” she said, a bit sheepishly. </p>
<p>He laughed, full-bellied and affectionate, and it was all he could do to not kiss her right there. “It’s perfect.”</p>
<p>It might’ve been his imagination, but a blush dusted her face and her smile brightened just the slightest bit. She was still difficult to read, yes, but he had had quite a bit of experience now. </p>
<p>“Everyone’s here, Professor,” The boy with light blue hair, or rather man now, came up to Byleth. Ashe, if he remembered correctly. Admittedly Claude only knew the Blue Lions students from that one mission where he was determined to tag along, when Byleth’s hair turned into that mint green shade and her sword glowed almost blindingly. The sight of her like that, drenched head to toe in divinity, was the thing that finally convinced him that the goddess of Fódlan was real. </p>
<p>“Thank you, Ashe,” she replied with a nod. “Is Dimitri here?”</p>
<p>The other man startled. “N-No, Professor. We can’t get him out of his room. Annette and Mercedes planned on bringing him food later.”</p>
<p>Somehow she did not look surprised at all. “That’s fine,” she said, “I’ll talk to him once everyone gets settled in. Gilbert?”</p>
<p>“He is waiting in the Cardinal’s Room along with Seteth and Alois. They’ve already had lunch.”</p>
<p>“Thank you, Ashe. You can go now. Share a meal with the others, will you?”</p>
<p>Ashe blushed. “Of course. You should eat too, Professor,” he turned to the other man. “Claude.”</p>
<p>Claude put on that charming smile as soon as the attention fell on him again. Call it a habit, but he thanked Ashe with a wink and watched in satisfaction as the sweet boy stuttered. </p>
<p>“Still as charismatic as ever, I see,” Byleth turned to him with her arms folded, a rare playful grin on her lips. Somehow it didn’t quite reach her eyes.</p>
<p>He replied by turning up the charm even more. “Gotta keep up my reputation, Teach.” </p>
<p>She hummed noncommittally. “Come eat.”</p>
<hr/>
<p>Gilbert, as he recalled, had been one of the Knights of Seiros before the monastery’s fall. The man was hesitant of him, but after Byleth made it clear that he would be a valuable asset in strategizing and vouched for his expertise as a tactician, he earned a spot at the war table. Vaguely, his memories told him of a time when it was him who sat at the end of this very table, who gave commands and controlled a ragtag army of Alliance forces, church soldiers and anyone else who would join their cause. But now Gilbert and Seteth stood in his place, with Byleth and the Sword of the Creator by their side. </p>
<p>“Welcome back, Professor,” Seteth nodded to her, “It is good to see that you are well.”</p>
<p>“We have two objectives; to reclaim the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus and to overthrow the Adrestian Empire.” Gilbert said. “We will use Garreg Mach as our base; it’s not the best place and it has sustained a considerable amount of damage, but it will suffice as shelter. Seteth?”</p>
<p>The bishop looked at Byleth, “The Archbishop entrusted all her affairs to you. From now on, I shall comply with your wishes.”</p>
<p>All eyes were on her as Claude realized she would be the one making a decision.</p>
<p>“Gathering resources would be difficult,” she pointed out. “The monastery’s location is too remote to properly supply an army. The surrounding villages and merchants can keep us supplied for now, but funding would soon become a problem, especially if we plan to recruit. And we <em> need </em> to recruit.”</p>
<p>“House Riegan would be more than willing to help,” Claude spoke up from the side, and all eyes were on him. “Well, I would be willing to help, that is. I would need to return to the Alliance and arrange for a few diplomatic meetings, but other than that…”</p>
<p>“Uh, Claude?” The red haired man, Sylvain, said, with a hint of skepticism, “No offense, but everyone thought you died five years ago. With no heirs and Lord Riegan’s death, House Riegan had fallen out of prominence. House Gloucester has been running the Alliance, right up until their own fall last month to the Empire. What’s left of the Alliance is in the east now with House Goneril, being pressed up against Almyra by Edelgard.”</p>
<p>Claude cursed under his breath. Of course things would go to shit the second he disappeared.</p>
<p>Byleth shot him a glare from across the room. Right, this was his fault. Should’ve seen it coming. </p>
<p>“I need to return,” he said, setting his palms down on the war table, “I need to come back for what’s left of the Alliance.”</p>
<p>“A squadron of our men can escort you,” Alois said, looking over to Seteth and Byleth for confirmation, continuing when they nodded. “The road to Derdriu is treacherous now that the Empire has taken control of the Great Bridge of Myrddin, and we might have to take many detours, but we can get you there in a week.”</p>
<p>The sound of hurried, panicked footsteps suddenly echoed in the hallway. The people around the war table shot to their feet, instantly alerted, heads whipping around for the source of that noise. A soldier ran inside, holding a crumpled letter. </p>
<p>“Urgent intel from the Alliance front, Sir,” the man said, passing the piece of parchment to Gilbert. Gilbert’s eyebrows scrunched, and he all but ripped the envelope apart. His face darkened at the contents.</p>
<p>“What is it?” Byleth demanded.</p>
<p>The older man raised his head, and the look shadowing his features made it seem like he had aged ten years after reading that letter.</p>
<p>“Derdriu had fallen.”</p>
<p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>on god i am so sorry for the delay, but life has been difficult lately and this story is giving me some trouble. but i'm happy with how this turned out and i've already started working on the next one!!</p>
<p>hope you enjoyed &lt;3</p></blockquote></div></div>
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